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iPad News, Reviews, Apps, Accessories, and Tips

Tag: "Games – Educational"

Peekaboo Barn Debuts on iPad, Update Brings Personalization and Language Option

By Emily | October 4, 2011 | No comment yet

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A child’s voice greets the user upon opening Peekaboo Barn for iPad. It’s a small touch that is sure to catch children’s attention immediately. The first iteration of this simple game of hide-and-seek in the barnyard, for iPhone only, was well-received by children and parents alike. The newest update created a native version for the iPad that runs in HD.

Additionally, users can now add their own narration to the app. So whether parent, child, or a visiting grandparent speaks the animal’s names, hearing a familiar voice come out of the barn will surprise and delight the app’s little users. Users can also purchase Asian or European language packs in-app to broaden their child’s knowledge.

In AlphaTots “A” Stands for More than Apple — iPad App Review

By Emily | May 16, 2011 | 1 comment

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AlphaTots for iPad by Spinlight Studios is an interactive app that helps preschoolers learn the upper and lower case letters of the alphabet. Children can work through the alphabet in order, or pick letters in any order they choose, or join in a sing-a-long version of the alphabet song.

As Goldilocks might say, AlphaTots’ pacing is “just right.” The game is neither overstimulating nor boring. The child’s journey through the alphabet will expose him to a wide range of creative interactions from zapping space ships or vacuuming up peanuts with an elephant’s trunk, to using an X-ray to look inside wrapped presents or nibbling away at a concerned-looking gingerbread cookie.

Five $0.99 Kids Apps Worth a Look

By Cristi | January 8, 2011 | 1 comment

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The iPads in our home serve many different purposes for the members of our family. From my Words With Friends game play to my husband’s Apple TV remote and our kids education and entertainment, we’ve logged thousands of hours on the two iPads we have in our house. We are constantly on the lookout for good apps at a great price and we think the five below are worth a look. All the apps have at least a four star rating in the App Store and you can pick them up now for $0.99. Enjoy!

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Punflay’s Fall Sale on Educational iPad Apps

By Cristi | September 9, 2010 | No comment yet

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Many of us have kids back in school now and we’re on the prowl for educational iPad apps to enhance their learning experience. If you’re in that boat and looking for a good deal, then check out the Fall Sale from Punflay. The sale includes a number of educational apps and starts Friday, September 10th and runs through next Thursday, September16th.

Get the following educational apps on sale now:

My Numbers – $0.99 (regularly $1.99)

This colorful app is perfect for your toddler or preschooler. It looks like the simple toy little kids love with the modern twist of being on the iPad. Kids will learn to count from 1 to 10 while playing with birds, flowers or fish.

ABC Numbers – $1.99 (regularly $2.99)

The bright and colorful kid friendly interface introduces the letters and numbers to preschoolers. Your little ones will learn letter sounds, practice basic writing skills and sing the ABC song. They’ll also count from 1 to 10 while playing with fish, flowers and birds.

Mathomatix Number Sense HD – $0.99 (regularly $1.99)

Ideal for kindergarteners, this app includes five different activities and teaches counting, addition and subtraction.

Who Will Rule? HD – FREE (regularly $4.99)

This animated story book is based on an Aboriginal tale about animals and their survival. It has colorful hand-drawn illustrations, animated characters and four language options (English, French, Spanish and German) .

If you’re looking for fun educational apps for your kids, give these a try. Kids will love the apps and parents will love the prices!

Jungle Coins for iPad – App Review

By Cristi | July 29, 2010 | No comment yet

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Counting money is an important skill children need to learn and Jungle Coins for the iPad will help them do just that. If you’ve been following along on PadGadget for a while, you’ll remember I covered Jungle Time and Jungle Fractions by developer Andrew Short last month. Both of those are great educational apps for kids and he has since added another noteworthy title to his list with Jungle Coins.

Building on the jungle theme, Jungle Coins interactively teaches kids about identifying, counting and computing with coins. The large display, brightly colored graphics, fun animals and different categories will engage your child through play and help them learn.

There are four different money categories for kids to cover: Find, Count, Compare and Correct Change. When you start Jungle Coins, the app begins in Find asking kids to identify specific coins by dragging them from one side of the screen to the other. Complete the task and tap “Done”. If it’s correct, you’ll receive a green check and a smiley face from your animal, if not, you’ll see a sad face and an “X” instead. Try another problem in the same category by shaking the iPad or tapping “Shake” or move on to a different category by selecting one of the choices at the bottom of the screen.

Remaining categories include:

Count – displays different coins and lets kids enter the correct amount using the number wheel.
Compare – provides two sets of coins on either side of a line and asks kids to determine whether the coins are < (less than), = (equal) or > (greater than).
Correct Change – gives kids a story problem requiring them to provide change.

Maggie and the Trouble with Monkeys for iPad

By Cristi | July 21, 2010 | No comment yet

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I love to read books with my kids and eBooks are something relatively new for us. Since the release of the iPad, we’ve read a number of books together and really enjoyed it. Maggie and the Trouble with Monkeys is an app we all had fun reading and playing.

This interactive children’s app has a cute story, fun fonts and colorful illustrations. Join Maggie, a bright and imaginative five and a half year old, in her latest adventure. She’s got a little monkey that makes her life extremely difficult and causes lots of trouble. He does everything from eat all the cookies in the cookie jar to get mud on her new dress. What will she do? Will Maggie learn to love a monkey after all? I don’t want to spoil the ending, so you’ll have to buy the app to find out.

Enjoy this 22 page (11 screen) book app with your kids today. Maggie and the Trouble with Monkeys is available in the App Store for $4.99.

Screen shots after the break >>

Jungle Time for iPad – App Review

By Cristi | June 15, 2010 | No comment yet

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Want to help your child learn to tell time? Here’s a great little iPad app that will entertain and teach at the same time! Jungle Time for the iPad is both interactive and fun. Its large clock, bright colors, cute theme and different modes of “play” will engage your child and help them learn.

When you start Jungle Time, it begins in “Tell Time” mode with a large clock and a message asking you “What time is it?” Enter the correct time using the dial at the bottom of the screen and tap “Done”. If you get it right, a message appears telling you the time you set is correct and the animal on the clock face smiles and makes a noise. If you’re wrong, the message says “Sorry!”, the animal frowns and you can try again. Ready for another time? Tap “Shake” and a new time will appear on the clock. Get five in a row correct and the whole jungle congratulates you!

On-Track Time, Money & Fractions – App Review

By Cristi | April 30, 2010 | No comment yet

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As parents, we’re all concerned about the education of our children. On-Track Time, Money & Fractions from School Zone Publishing is a fun way for kids to learn these basic math skills. Developed for kids 6-7 years old, this app uses repetitive practice, intermixed with fun games, to help children perfect their skills with counting money, telling time and figuring fractions.

Move from screen to screen automatically as the game progresses, or jump from skill to skill by touching the horseshoes at the bottom of the screen. Each exercise prompts your child with instructions, marks their correct answers and then rewards them with a game or fun musical skit. If all the answers on a page are correct, you move along to the next page and your corresponding horseshoe turns green. If not, the horseshoe turns red. Move ahead or go back and try again by tapping on the red horseshoe. The more pages you answer correctly, the more green horseshoes you collect.

3D Storybook “The Wrong Side of the Bed” – App Review

By Roberto | April 30, 2010 | No comment yet

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If you have kids, there is nothing better for your children than when you spend time with them. One way I’ve always found very amusing is to spend time reading with them. This 3D Storybook app is a great way to do just that. You can read it yourself, have it read to them, or even view all the 3D illustrations using the funny 3D glasses!

Taking advantage of the iPad’s large high-resolution screen, this 3D Storybook app features detailed and humorous full-color painted illustrations, viewable in both 3D (with red/cyan 3D glasses) and standard 2D. The artwork selected for this app is very elegant, which allows the app to bring to life the upside-down story of a little boy who wakes up on the wrong side of the bed.

When I showed this app to my 5-year old daughter, the first thing she asked me was: “What happens when you wake up on the wrong side of the bed?” I quickly proceeded to explain to her that all of us have our off days. By using the app, with the funny 3D glasses, she was able to see the world in a different light or, in little Mott Turner’s case, from the ceiling. Even my daughter could quickly relate to the feeling. So imagine how they can identify with little Mott, who wakes confused one morning, to find himself in one upside-down misadventure after another, until finally he is right side up and once again, level-headed. She enjoyed the book and the story line!

Dr. Seuss Books – App Review

By Cristi | April 27, 2010 | 5 comments

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Everyone loves the fun rhymes, silly text and timeless illustrations in the classic children’s books by Dr. Seuss! A collection of those books are now available for you and your kids to enjoy in the App Store.

I reviewed The Cat in the Hat and The Lorax and really enjoyed them. These well known stories combine education and entertainment into one complete app package and promise to keep your little ones busy for hours. Each book has three options for reading:

Read to Me – The story is read to you and you turn the pages when you’re ready to move on.
Read it Myself – Read the book yourself, tap the text if you want to hear it read to you and turn the page when you are ready to move to the next page.
Auto Play - More like a movie. The story is read to you and advances automatically.

Star Walk for iPad – App Review

By Cristi | April 21, 2010 | 1 comment

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Man has been looking to the stars since the dawn of time. Now you can make your star gazing experience truly exciting with the Star Walk for iPad app. This app lets you track and discover more than 9,000 stars, planets, constellations and messiers. Star Walk has long been a top app for the iPhone and its iPad version has been in the top 20 since the iPad launched.

When you launch Star Walk, it finds your location and a screen appears showing all the major planets, stars and constellations visible from your location.

123 Color HD – App Review

By Cristi | April 19, 2010 | No comment yet

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Looking for a fun educational app for your preschooler or early elementary school aged child? Look no further than the #1 iPad Educational App, 123 Color HD. This paint-by-numbers (or letters) style app is an interactive fun way for kids to learn and be creative.

Overview: 123 Color HD teaches numbers and letters (upper and lower case) through artwork, sound effects and music. It also incorporates the use of English, Spanish, French and German languages.

Features: Start the app and the “Menu” screen appears. Choose “Demo,” “Settings,” “Info” or begin play by selecting a picture. The “Demo” provides a quick demonstration of how the app works but I found it really wasn’t necessary. This app is well put together, making it intuitive and easy to use.